morton seaman
Morton Seaman (b.1932), vice chairman of Rooms To Go, started his career in his father Julie's store in Brooklyn. After his father died in 1954, Morty went on to build Seaman's into one of the largest furniture retailers in the northeast, with 30 stores and annual sales of $290 million.
His outside-the-box thinking created business models and methodologies. He practiced vertical integration, acquiring real estate and manufacturing and in-house merchandising, advertising and sales programs. He excelled at generating desire and passion in the purchasing experience by creating advertising that would imprint Seaman's on his customers' minds and hearts. Mr. Seaman, an exciting teacher of the "art of retailing," has influenced many people in the industry.
The most singular talent at the helm of Seaman's was expanding the package concept and displaying rooms of furniture along with accessories for the consumer to buy at one price. When he sold Seaman's in 1988, Morty Seaman became his son Jeffrey's mentor and partner in establishing the next generation's new concept in furniture, Rooms To Go. Today, RTG, with 90 stores doing more than $1.25 billion in annual sales, is the largest furniture retailer in the United States.
Morty and wife Lois, son Jeff, and daughter Jill are deeply into philanthropic activities. An avid and highly competitive fisherman, he holds the world's record for Atlantic Salmon.